At its core, The Bane Witch is a revenge story, but it’s also about survival, power, and reclaiming identity. From the very first chapter—where Piers fakes her own death to escape her abusive husband—the book dives headfirst into dark and urgent territory. The tension set in those opening pages carries throughout the novel, as Piers reconnects with estranged family, uncovers her heritage as a Bane Witch, and learns to wield magic that is as dangerous as it is liberating.

The pacing worked well for me. It never dragged, but it also gave space for Piers’ self-discovery and her struggle to control her powers. I especially loved the way the magic system was tied to history, pain, and resilience—it felt fresh, distinct, and perfectly in line with the story’s themes of women taking their power back. Watching Piers turn her trauma into strength was deeply satisfying, even when she stumbled along the way.

That said, I do want to add a word of caution: the book contains on-page depictions of domestic violence and sexual assault. While the author includes content warnings, some of the descriptions were more explicit than I anticipated. I’d encourage readers to be sure they’re in the right headspace before picking this one up.

As for the characters, Piers is flawed, complicated, and very real—her mistakes and insecurities made her growth feel earned. I also enjoyed the coven dynamic, though I did wish there was more diversity represented. In 2025, I expect to see queer characters and women of color in stories like this, and their absence here was noticeable.

The ending felt slightly rushed, but overall this was a powerful, immersive read. Dark, vengeful, and empowering, The Bane Witch is a story about women refusing to be victims and learning to wield fear instead of succumbing to it.

I’ve been dying to read this one and can’t believe I got accepted for the arc!!! It was definitely lived up to the hype and I can’t wait to see what comes next for this author.

The Bane Witch is a story of revenge at its core, but it also explores more than that. The story starts with intensity that carries it throughout the novel, with Piers faking her own death to escape her abusive husband and reunite with a family she has never known. Through Piers' journey of self-discovery and her magic, she enacts her master plan that facilitates her escape from Henry and the other killer stalking women in Crow Lake. The pacing of this book was enjoyable, and while the concept of women seeking revenge on men for their evil deeds is not new, the execution and magic system is not one I have read before. I thoroughly enjoyed these concepts in the book and Piers' exploration and battle to learn how to control them.

I would caution those who have survived domestic violence and sexual assault to take care in picking up the book. While the author does provide a content warning, I was not quite prepared for just how on-page some descriptions were. With that said, make sure you are in a headspace that can cope with reading text of that nature.

I'll end with a quote that encompasses the book:

"We don't fear men in this house... Men fear us."

Ahh I do love a good revenge story. Strong female characters taking their power back from men is always a treat to read about. This book fits that bill perfectly. Killing only those men that deserved it was so satisfying.

The ending felt a little rushed, but I enjoyed the book overall. The magic and history behind the bane witches was well done. I wouldn’t mind being one myself:)

I ended up DNF’ing The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn at 36%. The premise had promise, but it didn’t hold my interest enough to keep picking it back up.

Definitely check the trigger warnings before reading — the depictions of abuse were more detailed than I expected. The book leans more into Gone Girl-style tension than the cozy magical vibes the cover suggests.
The opening focuses heavily on Piers escaping an abusive marriage and reconnecting with a long-lost aunt. While important, it took nearly 20% of the book before the magic showed up, and even then it wasn’t really explained until around 30%. By then, it felt like it dragged.
I also struggled with the romance setup, would have preferred to see Piers succeed on her own rather than relying on that element.
Overall, just not the right fit for me.

This had this gritty, lived-in magic that felt raw instead of polished. The relationships were complicated in a way that rang true—more about survival and trust than fairy-tale bonds. It left me thinking about how power always comes with a cost, even outside of fantasy.

I loved The Bane Witch. Dark, gothic, and fiercely feminist, it’s a story about survival, vengeance, and the dangerous magic of inheritance.

With its atmospheric Adirondack setting, earthy witchcraft, and a heroine whose rage feels both raw and redemptive, this book gripped me from the first page. The Bane Witch is haunting, intoxicating, and one I’ll be recommending to anyone who loves their magic dark and their stakes deadly.

The Bane Witch completely blew me away—dark, thrilling, and utterly immersive. I was hooked from the first page, completely captivated by the world-building and the way the magic felt both dangerous and mesmerizing. The characters were complex and compelling, and I loved how their struggles and choices kept me on the edge of my seat. The story balanced suspense, emotion, and a hint of romance perfectly, making it a book I didn’t want to end. It’s one of those reads that stays with you long after the final page—definitely five stars from me.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars)

The Bane Witch was an interesting and atmospheric read. I enjoyed the witchy, darkly magical vibe and the lyrical prose Ava Morgyn is known for. The story touches on themes of female empowerment, which I really appreciated, and the characters were layered and complex.

That said, the pacing felt uneven at times, and while the twists and intrigue kept me curious, it didn’t fully grip me all the way through. Still, it’s a solid read with a strong message and a haunting atmosphere that fans of gothic fantasy may enjoy.

Piers is fleeing an abusive husband, and she knows there’s only one way he’ll truly let her go: if she’s dead. So she fakes her death and makes her way across the country to the only family she has left: a great-aunt she hasn’t spoken to since she was a child. Piers meets the rest of the family and learns she is a Bane Witch–and that her husband is not the only one after her.

Piers is such a realistic, relatable character. It was easy to be on her side as she made mistakes, developed into her new identity, and learned to forgive herself, even if she wasn’t always likable.

As far as the other characters, there’s not enough diversity for 2025, and no, a small-town setting is not a good excuse. There could’ve easily been a lesbian couple and some women of colour in the coven. Loses a full star for lack of representation.

Overall an immersive story about sisterhood, empowerment, and strength, THE BANE WITCH is one of my favourite reads of 2025.

I loved the premise of this book: a witch capable of poisoning men by consuming poison herself. There was a lot to enjoy in this story, but the pacing lagged and it didn't stick with me very long.

My thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | St.
Martin's Griffin for the ARC.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this eARC. All opinions are my own.

This was an enjoyable reading experience.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this but it was so good!! I was immediately drawn into Piers' story and getting away from her abusive husband. The author does am incredible job of the revealing what a bane witch and bringing all the compenents together. I found myself turning the pages, unable to put it down. I wanted to know what happened next - who was the next target and would they be caught. The little touch of romance was perfect and I love a good dog in a story.

I just want to stay in this world a little longer - stay with these characters, continue to follow their stories and that to me is the mark of a brilliant book!!

This was such a great story! I love Piers, her family, and their awesome ability to eat poison and use that poison to kill evil men. This family is similar to poison frogs ingesting toxic insects to build up poison on their skin, so cool.

I loved the ending of this book; it was not what I was expecting, but it was the perfect ending to this story.

Looking forward to reading more of Ava Morgyn's wok in the future.

The book blub for this one is "Practical Magic meets Gone Girl". This fun but dark fantasy witchy read is entirely spellbinding. "A very little poison can do a world of good".
It works and it's compelling with family drama with a feminist perspective.

DNF a third of the way through.

I was very excited to receive an eARC of this novel. Its mystery and intrigue, along with a Gone Girl aesthetic, felt fresh and exciting with the addition of poison and witchy vibes.

However, I quickly fell bored. The plot moved very fast, and I felt dragged along. It also felt formulaic; I could almost predict Piers' steps. Piers continued making poor decisions despite being a grown woman--while that can be a part of a character's arc, it came across as too obvious.

Despite picking up and putting down even after publication, I couldn't be compelled to continue on. Perhaps I will revisit during the spookier months for a light read, but for now, it's not for me.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the eARC copy of this book. It's always an honor.

Posted on July 30, 2025 on Goodreads.

I picked this up before release but wasn’t quite ready for it so I recently circled back and WOW. This was so freaking good! 🔥

I’m not a huge fantasy reader, but give me witches and thrillers and I’m in! 🧙‍♀️🔪

This had everything: murder, revenge, witchcraft, and sisterhood. Once I got into it, I could not stop turning the pages. I was up at 3AM, in pitch black, in a hotel room during a basketball tournament with my husband and daughter devouring this in the dark. 😱📖

The characters were fully developed and the ending? 👏 So well done. Easy, easy 5⭐️ read for me. If you haven’t picked this one up yet, stop what you’re doing and grab it! 🙌

Side note: Ever since I finished this, mushrooms are popping up everywhere around me… I’m starting to question my witchyness. 🍄😅

DNFed at around 20%. I couldn’t get into the story and wish I did. The storyline sounds amazing but sadly this book is just not for me. It’s a dark book (not out of comfort level for me) but honestly nothing big was happening that was keeping me intrigued to keep on going. This was sadly a miss for me but I hope I to see other books by Morgyn soon.

*this arc was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return *

Whew that was a wild ride! Lots going on here. Feminist vigilante fantasy thriller novel. Piers reclaims her identity after years of abuse and finds out she has inherited some lethal magic that subdues bad guys better than any man-made weapon. It's twisty, and the world building takes a bit to get going. The writing is well done, but there are a few things that don't quite add up even at the end. There's potential for a sequel though, so I wonder if anything is meant to come back up in another book. Anyway, I enjoyed this overall. It was fairly fast-paced and had me interested the whole way through. I felt the murder mystery fell a little flat at the end, wrapped up way too quickly, but that also felt necessary for the sheer number of conflicts that needed to be wrapped up at the end. There was a bit too much going on for everything to fit together nicely, but it was forgivable. The suspense was there, and I had to fight my impulse to read the last page the whole way through.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for this ARC!

I was surprised at how quick of a read this turned out to be! The character development was super strong and the plot moved along really quick. I would definitely recommend this book.